


To Saturn and Back

by firstdegreefangirl



Series: Buck Days [1]
Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Christopher Diaz is a National Treasure, Gen, I love mine, M/M, excellent glow, the blanket exists btw, very soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-02
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 18:48:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26243683
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/firstdegreefangirl/pseuds/firstdegreefangirl
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley & Christopher Diaz (9-1-1 TV), Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Series: Buck Days [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1906411
Comments: 8
Kudos: 134





	To Saturn and Back

“Boy, that was quite a show, huh, Chris?” Buck stands up, still reeling a little bit from the way the room had been spinning around them until just a couple minutes ago. 

Christopher, for his part, is totally unfazed, leaping down from his chair so quickly that he almost overbalances and stumbles. 

“Yeah! This is the bestest Buck day ever!” 

At that, Buck can’t keep the grin off of his own face. The Buck Days had been his idea, the month after he and Eddie had started dating, to make sure that he and Christopher got to spend one-on-one time together. It gives Eddie a break too, a couple of days every month to catch up on bills or yardwork or whatever. All in all, it’s one of the best ideas he’s had for a while, and he has to agree with Christopher that the planetarium demonstration was a particularly good choice for today. 

“And we didn’t even go check out the new ice cream place yet. It’s only gonna get better, buddy.” 

“Oh yeah! We should look at the gift shop first, though. I want a s-souv-souviner!” 

“If we don’t get soveniers, did we really even go to the planetarium?” 

“Nope!” The lighthearted sarcasm goes right over Chris’ head, and he turns around to grin at Buck. 

They parade out of the auditorium, following the rest of the audience down the hallway until it ends at the entryway of the gift shop. A handful of visitors peal off, mostly older people heading for the exit, but Buck is only worried about keeping track of the head of reddish-brown hair in front of him. He’s not out for a repeat of the zoo incident today. 

Once they’re into the gift shop, Buck starts wandering around and looking at the different items for sale. He’s got an eye on Chris, can hear his excited chatter as he moves between the displays. But he also knows that he’ll be accountable for picking a trinket of his own. That’s the deal: at the end of the day, they both get to pick something to take home, something to remember their adventures. 

Usually Buck opts for a magnet or something small. He doesn’t need another T-shirt or a hunk of plastic, not when he’s got a dozen selfies and all the memories from their day together. Today, he’s turning a mug over in his hands, trying to decide if there’s room for it in his cabinets. It’s plain black at first glance, but the sign on the shelf explains how It’ll reveal hundreds of tiny stars when he fills it with a hot drink. 

He’s always been fascinated by constellations, had chosen the planetarium for today so he could share some of that excitement with the kid he’s come to think of as a son. So he figures he can have a mug, treat himself to something a little bit bigger this time and reorganize his cupboards later. 

Just when the cardboard box is tucked away under his arm, Chris starts calling out for him across the shop. 

“What did you find, little man?” He steps up beside Christopher, looking down to see what he’s holding. 

It’s a blanket, light grey and fuzzy, decorated with stars, planets and rocket ships. Buck reaches out and runs his hand across it, and Chris grins. 

“Bucky, look! It glows in-in the dark too! And it’s 50 inches by 60 inches; that’s more inches than me!” 

“It sure is. You could hide all the way underneath it, your dad and I might never find you.” 

“Yeah, you would! It glows, so you’d know where I am, even in the dark.” Christopher rolls his eyes, and Buck laughs. 

“Good point. That’s your pick?” 

“Yeah! Look, it’s got Saturn! With the rings!” He points at one of the motifs. 

“Good memory!” When Buck smiles at him, Christopher’s grin grows even wider, craving praise from the adults around him. 

“What’d you pick, Bucky?” They start walking toward the cash register as Buck shows Christopher the mug he’s holding onto, then they set both items on the counter. 

The cashier reads out the total and Buck’s heart skips a beat. 

Almost $80 for a cup and a fuzzy piece of fabric? Screw the LAFD, he should open a gift shop. 

But then he sees two little hands come up over the counter and start stroking the edges of the blanket, and he remembers that the price covers way more than just the space-patterned throw. 

He’s paying for the memories they’re making too, to let Christopher have these special days with ‘his Buck.’ 

And that’s worth a million dollars, if you ask him. 

Tonight, he and Eddie will tuck him in underneath his new blanket, turn off the lights and listen to him cheer when the shapes light up around him. Eddie will pull the mug out of the plastic sack, get ready to wash it so Buck can have coffee in the morning. The receipt will cling to the box and Eddie will glance at it, admonish Buck for spending $45 on a blanket for his 10-year-old. But there will be a smile on his face, and admiration in his tone, for the man who loves Chris as his own. 

Buck would give his left arm for the mass-produced blanket, because it was never really about the blanket at all. 

It’s about Christopher knowing that Buck loves him, to Saturn and back. 


End file.
